Man shoots his own dog dead in his kitchen — and the stray bullets also kill a neighbor’s dog

Birmingham Police Sgt. Bryan Shelton told WIAT that on May 28, police responded to a call from neighbors who heard multiple gunshots coming from the apartment of 25-year-old Grant Randall Sides.

Responding officers saw a trail of feces on the sidewalk leading up to Sides’s apartment. Sgt. Shelton said they later discovered a dog dead from a gunshot wound in the suspect’s residence. Noticing bullet holes in a shared wall, officers found a dog next door had also been fatally shot.

Sides had originally claimed that a neighbor shot and killed his dog. However, officers determined that the neighbor wasn’t home at the time of the shooting, according to the station.

Neighbor Brandon Watkins told Al.com that Walter, the slain dog, was his brother’s pet. Watkins said he was watching the 12-year-old canine while his brother was on vacation.

The suspect is believed to have been in the kitchen when he shot his own dog. The bullets penetrated the wall and hit Walter, who was sleeping on Watkins’ bed. Two other dogs in kennels at the time were unharmed.

“If it had been later in the night, he would have killed me,” Watkins told the newspaper. “Walter was on my pillow where I sleep.”

The neighbor claimed there’s still a blood stain in the carpet marking where Walter was killed. He also mentioned this his own dog is “traumatized” by the ordeal and won’t go near where the shooting took place.

Walter’s owner, Colby Watkins also commented on the ordeal to Al.com.

“My friends and family are heartbroken over the loss of Walter, but it pales in comparison to the disgust and anger about this guy killing his own dog in his own kitchen, and the blatant disregard for those around him by firing his gun indiscriminately into other people’s homes.”

Sides was charged with driving under the influence of a controlled substance following the apperent car crash. Sgt. Shelton declined to disclose whether he was jailed at the time because it was a misdemeanor offense.

The 25-year-old was arrested Monday afternoon after being sought on felony warrants for a shooting complaint and two counts of aggravated cruelty to animals. He was also charged with driving under the influence on the same day — and that arrest appears to have taken place before the dog shooting. Police would not confirm if Sides was ever booked into jail on the misdemeanor DUI charge, but he was taken to the hospital.